1) Joaquín Guzmán Loera AKA "El Chapo Guzmán"
(Shorty Guizmán)
Country of operation: Mexico
Downfall: still alive and operating.
He might only be 5ft 6 inches tall, but Loera has been named the biggest drug lord of all time by the US Drug Enforcement Administration. "The godfather of the drug world" currently exports cocaine, marijuana, heroin, and methamphetamine, to the U.S., Asia and Europe. Loera is rumoured to be hiding in caves since escaping from prison in 2001 via a laundry cart and the US government has placed a $5 million bounty on his head.
2) Pablo Escobar AKA: "The World's Greatest Outlaw"
Country of operation: Colombia
Downfall: While being chased by the Columbian National police in 1993, the fugitive attempted to escape by running across the roofs of adjoining houses to reach a back street but was shot dead.
The Colombian narcoterrorist and drug lord was declared by Forbes magazine in 1989 as the seventh richest man in the world. With an estimated personal fortune of $25 billion, the ruthless kingpin is said to have controlled four-fifths of the world's cocaine market. A family man who experienced a short career in Columbian politics, Escobar was also responsible for smuggling 15 tons of cocaine a day into America. His campaign of against challengers resulted in the assassination of 30 judges, over 400 police officers, and the bombing of Avianca Flight 203, which he believed contained the Prime Minister at the time.
3) Amando Carrillo Fuentes AKA: "Lord of the Skies"
Country of operation: Mexico
Downfall: Accidentally killed by plastic surgeons in 1997 while undergoing major medical alterations to his appearance. The surgeons involved were later found stuffed into oil drums.
Although a refined and diplomatic businessman, at his peak, Fuentes had Mexico's top drug enforcement official on his payroll. Gaining his nickname because of the large fleet of planes he used to transport drugs, the smuggler was transporting four times more cocaine to America than any other trafficker in the world. Amado's operations were carried out on such a large scale that he became the most wanted trafficker in the world.
4) Khun Sa AKA: "The Opium King"
Country of operation: Burma
Downfall: Surrendered to the Burmese government, but when they refused to extradite him, Khun Sa lived the life of luxury until his natural death in 2007.
In the 1960s, the Burmese warlord, along with an 800-man army, began to cultivate an opium empire in the jungle. Khun Sa, which means "Prince Prosperous", is also famed as being the world's most prolific heroin trafficker, producing an estimated one-third of the world's supply.
Country of operation: USA
Downfall: He was stabbed and killed less than two years into serving his sentence.
Leader of the 69 Mob since he dropped out of high school, Felix Wayne Mitchell Jr. is credited with creating the country's first large-scale, gang-controlled drug operation.
His nickname, taken from the cartoon character Felix the Cat, showed a boyish charm that made him popular with local youths – as well as employing them as runners and drug spotters. Thousands of locals turned out on the street to pay their respects at his funeral procession in 1986, which was likened to the funeral of Martin Luther King Jr.
6) Arturo Beltrán Leyva AKA: "Boss of Bosses"
Country of operation: Mexico
Downfall: After an attempted assassination from officials at Leyva's own Christmas party in 2009, he was killed by Mexican Navy intelligence one week later after a 90-minute shoot-out.
Leader of the Mexican drug trafficking organisation Beltrán Leyva Cartel, the chief was responsible for the production, transportation and wholesaling of cocaine, marijuana, heroine and methamphetamine.
The gang have also been blamed for hundreds of cases of contract killing, torture, kidnapping, human smuggling, money laundering, extortion, murder and gun-running.
7) Rick Ross AKA: "Freeway"
Country of operation: USA
Downfall: In 1996, Ross was set up by his partner to sell 100 kilos of coke to an undercover Drug Enforcement Administration agent.
During the height of his drug dealing in Los Angeles throughout the 1980s, the shady character claimed to been selling $3 million dollars-worth of crack, daily. Ross's operation is alleged to have purchased in excess of 400 kilos of cocaine a week before being sentenced to life imprisonment. Single-handedly, he is often considered to be responsible for the crack cocaine epidemic in the US.
8) Griselda Blanco AKA: "The Cocaine Godmother"
Country of operation: USA
Downfall: Blanco's violent methods made her the victim of innumerable assassination attempts by rivals.
Ruthless, brutal and believed to be psychotic, Blanco loved wearing couture fashions, smoking crack, and ordering creative, cold-blooded assassinations. Responsible for an estimated 200 murders, including the shooting of a two-year-old, Blanco was imprisoned for 20 years. She continued her cocaine business while behind bars and was released from prison in 2004. Two weeks ago, the notorious gangster was shot dead by riders on a motorcycle – an assassination method she had been credited with inventing.
9) Christopher Coke AKA: "Dudus" Country of operation: Jamaica
Downfall: Coke was detained during a routine roadblock while dressed as a woman, before handing himself over to the police.
The Jamaican drug kingpin and leader of the ominous Shower Posse gang is said to have built a fortune of more than $30 billion before his arrest in 2010. Coke's privileged upbringing meant he went to school with children of the country's political elite, before taking over his father's gang. He became the leader of Kingston's Tivoli Gardens, distributing money to the area's poor, creating employment and setting up community centres while also exporting of vast quantities of marijuana and cocaine to the US.
10) Frank Lucas AKA: "Superfly"
Country of operation: USA
Downfall: His house was raided in 1975 where more than half a million
dollars-worth of cash was found at the scene. Lucas was arrested and later
sentenced to 70 years in prison for over 100 drug-related convictions.
The heroin dealer and organised crime boss operated in Harlem during the late
1960s and early 1970s. Renowned for buying his supplies direct from sources
in the Golden Triangle Lucas stored the goods in coffins of dead American
servicemen. His career was famously dramatised in the 2007 film, American
Gangster. He was portrayed by Denzel Washington.